Attendance down about a third at Phoenix spring-training parks

by Sadie Jo Smokey - Mar. 18, 2011 11:13 AMThe Arizona Republic

Fewer fans are attending spring-training games at two of Phoenix's three Cactus League baseball parks.

Numbers for the Milwaukee Brewers, who train at Maryvale Baseball Park, 3600 N. 51st Ave., are down 30 percent compared with the same number of games last year. Attendance for the Oakland Athletics, who train at Phoenix Municipal Stadium, 5999 E. Van Buren St., is down 33 percent.

Built in 1998 for the Brewers, the Maryvale Baseball Park has a 10,000-seat stadium. The Brewers have two seasons left on their original agreement, which expires at the end of 2012.

The Brewers have an option to renew with the city for an additional six years, said Rob Harman, of the Phoenix Parks and Recreation Department, which oversees the two ballparks.

Harman said the city and team management are talking about the Brewers' future in west Phoenix.

"They've given us a wish list of improvements they'd like at the ballpark," Harman said. "We're willing to do whatever we reasonably can to keep the Brewers in Maryvale."

Harman said newer ballparks have more space for training, such as weight rooms.

Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, the new spring-training home of the Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies, is a 140-acre baseball complex featuring a 7,000-seat stadium, with room for 4,000 more in the outfield lawn area, plus 12 other full-size fields, four half-fields and two agility fields.

"What you're seeing now is not just spring training but a commitment to year-round baseball for these young players," Harman said. "Space is much more significant."

The Maryvale Baseball Park has seven practice fields, a two-story clubhouse, administration building and press facilities on 56 acres.

Tickets range from $8 for lawn seats to as much as $22.

The Oakland Athletics have been using Phoenix Muni for their spring-training home since 1982. Originally built in 1964, the stadium located south of the Phoenix Zoo, underwent a $6.4 million renovation in 2003. The 7,850-seat stadium charges $12 to $25 for tickets.

Robert Brinton, Cactus League Association past president, said attendance is stronger at the end of the spring-training season as rosters are solidified and starting players get more time on the field.

The Oakland A's host the Colorado Rockies at Phoenix Municipal Stadium on March 13, 2011.

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Spring training attendance

Attendance is down at two Phoenix stadiums for the first half of the season through March 13.This accounts for about 52 percent of the games Cactus League teams will have played from late February to the end of this month.